Revolving firearm



No. 6|5,||7. Patented Nov. 29, |898. Y n. B. wEssoN.

REVOLVING FIREARM.

Application led Apr. 13, 1899,)

(No Model.)

W .Zia/@M Www/'Q @M @M l@ W UNTTED STATES PATENT EETCE.

DANIEL B. W'ESSON, OF SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS.

REVOLVING FIREARM.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 615,117, dated November 29, 1898.

Application tiled April 13, 1898. Serial No. 677,417. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, DANIEL B. WEssoN, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Springfield, in the county of Hampden and State of Massachusetts, have invented new and useful Improvements in Revolving Firearms, of which the following is a specication.

This invention relates to revolving rearms of the class thereof in which the barrel is hinged to the frame and carries on its rear end the cylinder of the arm and in which a barrel-catch located on the upper side of the arm, over the cylinder, holds the barrel and cylinder in firing positions relative to the stock or frame of the arm and the hammer, the object being to provide an additional and automatically-acting barrel-catch on the opposite or under side of the arm, preferably at the hinge thereof, which in order to break down or to swing the barrel downward out of firing position must be operated simultaneously with said catch on the upper side of the arm. The purpose of said automaticallyacting barrel-catch located as aforesaid is to provide a catch which is inaccessible to a person who shall attempt to grasp and detach said upper-side catch and break down or disable the arm when held by a person for firing the same in self-defense. v

The object of the invention is to provide an auxiliar)7 safety barrel-catch for said iirearms which is under the sole control of the person holding the arm for firing and which must be operated simultaneously with the said catch on the upper side of the arm before said barrel and cylinder can be swung out of firing position, as described; and the invention consists in providing said auxiliary means for holding the parts of the arm in iiring position, as and for the purpose set forth and as hereinafter fully described, and more particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings forming part of this speciiication, Figure l is a side elevation of a revolving rearm having my improvements applied thereto. Fig. l is a side elevation of the joint portion of the barrel of the arm, illustrating the manner more in detail of applying my improvements thereto. Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a barrel-holding lever and an actuating-spring therefor, which are hereinafter described. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the barrel-hinge parts, showing the extractor-cam therein.

In the drawings, A indicates the barrel, B the frame, and E the trigger, of the firearm.

The joint parts of the barrel are indicated by n n, the latter being received between the two usual cheek parts e on the frame B and connected between them by the usual jointpivot f. The extractor-cam o occupies its ordinary position between the said joint parts n n, as also does the barrel-catch cam m. For the purposes of this invention the said joint parts n n have recesses formed in their peripheries, as clearly shown in Fig. 3, whereby catch-abutments fu o are formed thereon. In a part of the frame B adjoining said cheek parts e and just forward of the trigger-guard D a pawl J is pivoted, having a finger-arm 5 extending rearwardly and preferably following the line of curvature' of the adjoining part of said trigger-guard and shaped as a finger-piece', as shown in Figs. l, l, and 2. Said pawl J has a pivot-pin hole 4 therethrough to receive a suitable pin, which passes through the same and through said frame part. The extremity 3 of said pawl J is properly shaped for engagement against the said abutments o o in the borders of said joint parts n n of the barrel A of the firearm, and to permit the free engagement of said extremity with said abutments the extractorcam 0 has a recess w in that part of its periphery between said abutments, as shown in Fig. 3. A recess s is formed in said pawl J below its pivot-pin hole 4, which receives one end of a spring K, and the opposite end of said spring abuts against an adjoining part of the frame B of the firearm, as indicated in Fig. 1, thereby acting to swing the extremity 3 of said pawl J against the borders of said joint parts 'n n and into engagement, when required, with said abutments, thereby holding the barrel A of the firearm in thefiring position (shown in Fig. l) independently of the ordinary barrel-catch P on the opposite side of the arm; but before the barrel can be so swung the said pawl must be also swung out of engagement with the said joint-part abutments of thebarrel, as aforesaid,by pressing upon the finger-arm 5 of said pawl J.

The above-described pawl J, located under IOO the rearrn, constitutes an automatically-acting barrel-catch normally serving, with the usual catch P on the upper side of the arm, to retain the frame and barrel thereof in liring position, but serving alone to retain the barrel in said position if said catch P be forcibly or otherwise disconnected from the frame,

Aas above set forth; but both of said catches must be simultaneously operated in order to break down or swing the barrel on the arm. It is obvious that when the cylinder of the iirearm is to be cleared of empty shells or to be charged with cartridges said barrel-catch P and pawl J are operated to free the barrel, so that it may swing on the frame.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, isn

l. In a revolving rearm of the class in which the barrel breaks down from the stock, the combination with said barrel and stock of a plurality of barrel-locking catches engaging the same at positions relatively distant from each other, so that the weapon cannot be disabled by the grasp of an opponent releasing one of the catches, substantially as described.

2. In a firearmA of the class described, the barrel and stock or frame having the usual barrel-holding catch at the top and out of reach of the ingers While the hand grasps the stock in usual position, and a supplelnentary barrel-catch at the under side of the stock,

under control of the fingers while the hand grasps the stock in usual position, the disengagement of both catches being required to permit the barrel to swing down from firing position, substantially as described.

3. In a revolving firearm of the class described having a barrel-hinge pivoted to the frame thereof, a pawl pivotally hung on said frame and engaging said hinge, and thereby holding the barrel in firing position independently of the usual barrel-catch of the arm, substantially as set forth.

et. In a revolving irearm of the class described having a barrel-hinge pivoted to the frame thereof, a spring-actuated pawl pivotally hung on said frame and engaging said hinge and having a inger-lever thereon whereby t-he pawl may be operated for disengagement from said hinge, substantially as set forth.

5. In a revolving firearm of the class described having a barrelhinge, provided with pawl-abutments, pivoted to the frame thereof, a pawl pivotally hung on said frame and engagin g said paWl-abutments and thereby holding the barrel in firing position4 independently of the usual barrel-catch of the arm, substantially as set forth.

DANIEL B. VESSON.

lVitnesses:

H. A. OHAPIN, K. I. CLEMoNs. 

